Emma Lawson

Known as the "theater guy" by many in the Brazos Valley community, Robert Borden covered the arts and more during his time as opinions page editor for The Eagle. Now, after over 38 years of service, Borden has officially retired last week at age 75.

"I have a passion for newspapers as the guardians of accountability in our elected officials. I believe newspapers chronicle the life of a community and its people, serving as the first blush of history," Borden said. "Most importantly, I was privileged to work with wonderful publishers, exceptional editors and outstanding reporters too many to count, all of whom enriched my life."

Before Borden worked at The Eagle, he graduated from the University of Texas in Austin with a B.A. in journalism and worked for The Killeen Daily Herald, the Lubbock Avalanche Journal, The Midland Reporter-Telegram and the Odessa America. Borden worked at The Eagle for a year, then worked for JCPenney for eight years, before rejoining The Eagle on Oct. 20, 1986, as an education reporter. In 1990, he was named the editor of the opinions page, a position he kept for the next 34 years.

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Crystal Dupre, a former publisher at The Eagle, jokingly said that although Borden may have been a pack rat, he was always passionate about the Bryan and College Station communities.

"Robert has been the voice of The Eagle for many, many years, just through his service and all the different things he's done," said Dupre, now the development director at the Finis Welch Foundation. "He just has so much knowledge, and that's going to be a huge void for The Eagle."

During their time at The Eagle, Dupre said they often had heated debates on community topics but greatly respected each other regardless.

"I sat in the room with [Robert] many times when we debated about many different angles on editorials and things like that. Robert was fair. He was always for what was best for our community, what was best for our state and who the best person was for that," she said. "We had some heated discussions in there, but at the end of the day, we were all on the same page as far as working together. I have a lot of respect for that."

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Dupre said she enjoyed her time with Borden, appreciated his contributions to the arts and wishes him nothing but the best for the future.

"I enjoyed my many years with Robert. He's one of a kind and I wish him the absolute best in retirement," she said. "His presence, his knowledge, his passion and his skill is going to be missed in that newsroom. I just think about the number of reporters he gave advice to over the years and he's helped a lot of people along the way."

M.A. Sterling, previous managing artistic director for Brazos Valley TROUPE, met Borden around 30-35 years ago and the two became close friends around five years later.

"He's one of the most unheralded supporters of the arts that I've ever known and a genuine supporter. While I'm the village idiot, he's the village leader in that regard," he said. "He should be celebrated and appreciated. I don't think he gets enough of that from decades of genuine support. ... I thank him and also thank his late mother because she was a jewel."

One of Sterling's favorite memories of Borden was during Sterling's 50th birthday roast where Borden was one of the first speakers on the night.

"I distinctly remember sitting there and I had high school classmates and friends from [Texas] A&M who came and a lot of them were also African American. Robert gets up for his roast and says, 'I decided one day I wanted a black friend and I put an ad in to have a black friend and M.A. was the one I wound up with. So I guess I didn't get my money's worth in the end,'" Sterling recalled. "That's his humor. It's quick and it's clever. It was hilarious."

Alongside writing articles for TROUPE shows, Borden also wrote articles for StageCenter, The Theatre Company, OPAS and theaters outside of Bryan-College Station. Sterling said he is a hero to both him and many other local artists who greatly appreciate the work Borden did.

"I think his impact is immeasurable, because it's not just the stories he wrote to support each of the groups, but also the volunteer time he put in and all the financial support," he said. "He was an equal opportunity supporter because he loves the arts and understands that is a major part of quality of life anywhere but especially here in Bryan-College Station."

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